Home » From Colt to Lancer Evolution VI: Mitsubishi treasure up for auction

From Colt to Lancer Evolution VI: Mitsubishi treasure up for auction

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ROMA. Fans of the Mitsubishi brand have a specific date to keep in their diary. Starting from April 1st, the website www.autoauction.co.uk will start the auction of a collection of 14 sports and historic cars owned by Cirencester Mitsubishi Uk, put up for sale following the decision of the Japanese company to stop distribution and marketing of its models in the United Kingdom.

The small fleet of cars includes true icons, to which fans will not be indifferent. The title of queen goes to the red Lancer Evolution VI Tommi Makinen Edition, with red and black interiors, of which only 2,500 units were produced. The model put up for auction – Cirencester salespeople assure – was built in 2001 to celebrate the legendary rally driver’s fourth world title, has only covered 10,000 miles and is featured in many videos on youtube. Also interesting are a Colt Lancer and a Colt Galant: the first produced in nine series from 1973 to 2007 and the second from 1969 to 2016. The Colt Lancer is the first Mitsubishi registered in the United Kingdom: the specimen auctioned is a 1400 entry-level from 1974 in white with black interior and with 73 thousand miles on the odometer. The Colt Galant, on the other hand, was born from the ashes of the Colt 1500 and its design – particularly aerodynamic for the time – was the work of Shinichi Mitsuhashi, the then director of the Mitsubishi style center, who for the car was inspired by the sedans signed by Giugiaro. The example owned by Cirencester is the first imported into the UK in spring 1974. It is a top-of-the-range 2000 GL version with the new 115 hp Astron 1.995 cc engine. Baby blue with a beige interior, it has traveled about 60,000 miles.

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A Starion Turbo and a Mitsubishi 3000GT also appear in the lot. The Starion was produced between 1982 and 1989: it was a rear-wheel drive and front-engined sports car with significant dimensions, given its length of 4410 mm, width of 1685 and height of 1321 mm, whose chassis it came from the Lambda. The exemplar put up for auction is from 1988, has a 1997 cc engine, is red with black interior and has traveled 59 thousand miles. The 3000 GT was instead produced in three generations between 1990 and 2000. The version marketed in the Old Continent had a 3.0 liter engine with 225 Hp but with a low torque of only 272 Nm due to the absence of the turbocharger. The 3000 GT VR4 twin-turbo was then imagined and built, with a torque of 415 Nm. The color of the specimen auctioned is Red Passion with dark gray interior. Registered in 1992, it has an engine of 2972 ​​displacement and on the odometer it shows only 34,000 miles.

But that is not all. To the delight of rally enthusiasts, three more Evo models will be auctioned, including a very special Mitsubishi Evolution IX which won the British Rally Championship for two consecutive years in 2007 and 2008. Driven by Guy Wilkes and Phil Pugh, the car has recorded numerous victories on both asphalt and gravel. Red in color both inside and out, it was registered in 2007. The other two rally cars are an IX MR FQ-360 HKS and an X FQ-440 MR. The first represents the final edition of the Lancer Evolution platform. Meticulously maintained, it has less than 5,000 miles on the odometer, has a gunmetal body, black interior and was registered in 2008. The X FQ-440 MR represents one of 40 examples – white with black interior – launched. from Mitsubishi Motors in the UK as a special edition. With only 7,500 miles, it was registered in 2015.

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Still with reference to the world of racing, the all-wheel drive Galant 2.0 GTi, homologated for the first time by Mitsubishi Motors in the UK and converted into a replica of a rally car by rally specialist Mitsubishi CO-Ordsport to promote the involvement of Pentti Airikkala in the 1989 Lombard RAC. The Galant was stored from 2003 to 2017, until it was bought back by Mitsubishi Motors and brought back to road condition. White in color with the same interior, it has almost 100,000 miles.

The collection that will be auctioned on Thursday 1 April also includes a 2014 Outlander PHEV Mk1 and a 2017 L200 Desert Warrior, built for a 10-page service in Top Gear magazine. Mitsubishi wanted to build a show truck to demonstrate the capabilities of its best-selling L200. When finished, the truck was shipped to Namibia to be filmed and photographed. The specimen auctioned is electric blue with black interior, has covered less than 6000 miles and is equipped with a 2442 cc engine combined with an automatic gearbox.

Finally, three examples of 4X4s could not be missing: specifically a Jeep Mitsubishi from 1983, a Shogun Mk1 and a Shogun Mk2. The first was realized thanks to the license that in 1953 the Willys Company granted to Mitsubishi for sale on the Japanese market. This model was built in 1979 and is one of eight imported into the UK by the Colt Car Company. Green in color with black interior, it features a mighty 2600cc with manual gearbox and has driven 18,850 miles. Instead, the Shogun Mk1 debuted in 1982 as a new type of multi-purpose vehicle, combining authentic off-road capabilities with comfort and handling. The model offered for sale dates back to 1987, it is red with a gray interior and its 2555 cc engine has traveled 100,052 miles. Finally, the Shogun Mk2 was one of the last MkIIs registered in the UK with an unusual specification: an automatic 3.0-liter V6 SWB but without leather trim. It is equipped with a 3000 V6 with 45,000 miles on the resume, blue body and gray interior. (fp)

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